.Mac Account Worth It?

trojanshawn · November 28, 2005 12:32PM

I know this has been discussed before on the forum as I have seen from my searches; however, I wanted to start a new thread on it and see what response I get. I am a new Mac user and am used to such sync priveledge from Windows through Plaxo. I wanted to see who has one and whether they feel it is worth the $100 a year for it. Thanks!!

kingofsomewherehot · November 28, 2005 1:45PM

It's worth it to me, but I certainly wouldn't presume to tell someone else that they NEED it.

I use the Syncing feature across three macs. I like the "permanent" eMail address that has followed me around the world for several years now. I use "Backup" from Apple, which requires .mac. I like the way it's integrated with iApps and Finder ... just makes it easy to use.

If you only want it for an eMail address, there are certainly cheaper (free) ways to go. If you'll actually USE several of the other features, then it's probably worth the $99.

As for eMail... of late, someone has been "phishing" the mac.com domain and a lot of us have been getting a fair amount of spam through the account!

trojanshawn · November 28, 2005 2:27PM

I think I would use it mostly for sharing pictures with friends, keeping track of my calendar and contacts. I really wish Plaxo would make something that works with Mac or another company would make something like Plaxo for Mac. Maybe there is something out there already that I dont know of. Anyone?

aquamac · November 29, 2005 12:47AM

Of course it's up to you. But for me $100/year email address and net sortage is out of the question. Besides Gmail is free. So for me the answer is NO.

trans9b · November 29, 2005 1:48AM

personally, i've never once been able to send an email through the .Mac servers using Mail.app. i can receive just fine, sending has been a permanent issue. no matter how many times the account gets rebuilt/configured by default. no matter what computer i try it on, i can never send email. i would never, ever pay for this service...i got it for free when i used to work for Apple, and even then i wouldn't recommend the service to customers..

radiospace · November 29, 2005 7:45PM

Whether it is "worth it" depends on your needs and which of the features you will use. For me it's worth it to have a good email address that isn't tied to an ISP due to moving around quite a bit recently and having to change services. The rudimentary 'build-yer-own website' functionality has been great for me as well, since I have neither the time nor inclination to design my own web page from the ground up.

Never had any problems with the mail service, btw.

cake · November 29, 2005 9:40PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Trans9B

personally, i've never once been able to send an email through the .Mac servers using Mail.app. ...

Your ISP is blocking port 25.

Quote:

Many Internet service providers block access to the standard port used to send mail (port 25) for any mail that doesn't use the ISP's own outgoing (SMTP) servers. This discourages the sending of unsolicited bulk email (UBE) or "spam". However, it can also make it difficult to send email using an authentic SMTP server other than the one provided by your ISP.

I simply contacted my ISP and they unblocked the port.

Give it a shot, otherwise look here for more information.

Is .Mac worth it? Absolutely.

I use it everyday for hosting images/movies and the recently released Backup 3 is fantastic. I've set up a bunch of backup plans that keep the data on my Macs safe.

cylon · November 30, 2005 11:38AM

It was worth a try for me at 69 dollars on the day after Thanksgiving. I'm switching over the email account and then throw in the syncing capability and ical publishing. Seemed like a bargain.

gon · November 30, 2005 12:27PM

I never even considered .Mac. E-mail, web space and such are everywhere. Backup is the most interesting part, but there's no way I'd "rent" such an essential service. I want to own my OS and I want to own my backup.

I guess .Mac is the better the less you know about computers and the more your time is worth. Finding e-mail accounts and web space takes a nontrivial amount of time, and I think ad-free web space always costs something anyway.

timo · November 30, 2005 12:54PM

For me synching contacts and calenders between three macs is worth the price of admission. Everything else is gravy.

trojanshawn · November 30, 2005 1:14PM

Thanks for all your input. I currently use GMAIL, so I am not sure if I would even use the .Mac email account. I guess the question I really have is how easy is it to email pictures and movies using the iPhoto and iMovie? I think the main reason I would use the .Mac account would be to share those through a website. But if it is easy to email them then I might not need it. The reason I ask is I use Picassa on my Windows computer at work and it is super easy to send pictures to people no matter how big the picture is. I could have a 5MB picture and Picassa will re-size it to send out easily. I havent even opened my iMac yet as I am waiting until I move to Los Angeles this weekend, so I have never used one yet. So I guess all the advice I could receive the better. Anyone know how I can do what I am looking for without a .Mac account?

kingofsomewherehot · November 30, 2005 2:05PM

The "Mail" program on your mac will work with ANY pop or imap email account... even gmail. iPhoto integrates with "Mail" independently of ".mac"... so you will definitely have access to the iPhoto/Mail integration without needing to shell out for ".mac".

easy to do ?.... just drag and drop and hit "send"... the photos are on their way.

trojanshawn · November 30, 2005 4:01PM

Thats good to know! I thought that a .Mac account was needed in order to use the integration features.

ibuzz · December 3, 2005 8:38PM

For me, it was a no brainer. I have quest dsl account and i could pay them to be my isp or use .mac. I don't remember what quest wanted for it (maybe $10.00/month) but i remember it was cheaper to use .mac and get all the extra features with it. That's my recollection anyway.

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yose · December 3, 2005 10:44PM

I use .Mac to help manage my projects. I use Project Management software that integrates with iCal (and the rest of Apple's stuff) that then publishes online so those people in my teams can access either through iCal or through the new .Mac groups.

I also enjoy iDisk syncing across my laptop and desktop(s).

nguyenhm16 · December 3, 2005 11:48PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Cake

Your ISP is blocking port 25.

Smtp.mac.com also listens on port 587.

As for .Mac itself, I find it indispensible since I have two computers. It is very nice to have the same set of documents available and synchronized on both my machines. Not to say that the iDisk implementation doesn't SUCK ASS

but it's better than nothing and well integrated into the system. I recently added a Windows laptop to my menagerie, and it's a hassle not having an offline iDisk and the integration into the system (also a hassle that I have to install CygWin and a ton of crap I don't want/need to get rsync, but that's a different story). The other syncing features are also extremely handy, as is the ability of NetNewsWire to keep multiple copies synced via .Mac (much faster than iDisk, ironically, since it apparently uses some other API).

.Mac Account Worth It?

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